Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, February 15, 2006 Page 3 City views library plan (Continued from page 1) COOKIES! - It’s Girl Scout Cookie Time, with sales running from Friday, Feb. 17 through March 5. Some Girl Scouts will go door-to-door, while others will be outside stores. There are eight cookie varieties from which to choose (or get some of each): Thin Mints, Lemon Coolers, Samoas, Trefoils, Tagalongs, Café Cookies, Do-si-dos, and All Abouts. Proceeds from the annual sale are used by Winema Girl Scout Council to provide a resident camp, special skills and educational programming, and assistance to girls, among other uses. A BERRY BUNCH - In preparation for the 25th annual Wild Blackberry Festival during the second week of August, members of the festival committee, and others, will meet Wednesday, Feb. 15. The meeting, that will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Josephine County Bldg. in Downtown Cave Junction across from SOFCU, will in- clude election of officers. Anyone can attend. The main meeting will be preceded at 7 by an informal mixer with possible leadership candidates. CHAMBER CHOMP - Nine valley restaurants that belong to Illinois Valley Chamber of Commerce are providing food for a chamber mixer Friday, Feb. 17 from 5 to 7 p.m. The informal gathering will be held at Fed- eral Paralegal Inc. behind Caves Pharmacy. Federal Paralegal, sponsor of the “meet-and-greet” event, ar- ranged for each of the nine eateries to provide a platter for 10 people. Besides food, there will be prize drawings every 20 minutes. See the ads elsewhere in this issue. SPECIAL FORUM - Learning about loan and grant programs available to faith-based and community- based organizations is the object of a free Federal Gov- ernment Programs Forum Tuesday, Feb. 28. The pro- gram will be held at Medford City Hall from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Preregistration is needed. Phone Eric Herst, of USDA Rural Development, toll-free at (866) 923- 5626, Ext. 3302; or contact him at eric.herst@or.usda.gov. EASTER SING - It’s not too late to join the “One Body-One Voice Choir” preparing an Easter musical. The performance will be given at the April all- congregations evening service. The group gathers Sun- days at 3 p.m. at Community Bible Church for rehears- als. For more information phone Tom Ninow at 592- 6083, or Carol Davis at 592-4990. ELKS & COUGARS - Two senior students at Illi- nois Valley High School have been chosen by Grants Pass Elks Lodge 1584 to receive one-year scholarships. Nikko J. Fujita will receive $1,000. Kamela R. Culver will receive $750. They are among six students chosen from four area high schools by the Elks Lodge, which stated, “There was intense competition, and the decisions were difficult for our judging committee.” NOTEPAD - Lorna Byrne Middle School will conduct Family Night, with catering by Taylor’s Coun- try Store, on Thursday, Feb. 16 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. A significant aspect will be for parents to complete surveys to help gain a Gear-Up grant. See the ad in this issue for more details … Church-goers and others can attend an all-congregations service Sunday, Feb. 19 at 6 p.m. at Bridgeview Community Church … Grant applications from organizations with 501(c)3 status are being ac- cepted by the Four Way Community Foundation. Phone 474-9774 to request an application ... Bridgeview Vine- yard and Winery is planned as the site for a fund-raising event to benefit the Siskiyou Community Health Center capital campaign on June 24. Wine-, food- and dessert tasting will be among features … A Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast is being planned for April 29 by Illinois Valley Ministerial Fellowship. Watch for details in the “Noose” ... A woman in CJ was told by her significant other that “gullible” was not in the dictionary. She im- mediately looked it up, and said, “Hey, ‘gullible’ is too in here.” Her companion just smiled … Odd California laws: Nobody is allowed to ride a bicycle in a swimming pool in Baldwin Park. Peacocks have the right-of-way to cross any street in Arcadia. And in Blythe you cannot wear cowboy boots unless you own at least two cows. LAST WORDS - Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts, and everything will be well. (Mahatma Gandhi) Corner of Redwood Hwy. and Rockydale Road - 592-5386 Winter hours: Monday - Saturday, 9 to 5 Closed Sunday Fruit trees, Berries, Shade & Ornamental trees 20% OFF all bare root! Buy now & SAVE. Prevent summer insect & fungus problems with a dormant spray now! Show me your garden and I shall tell you what you are. - Alfred Austin - opened with presentation of the colors by members of Boy Scout Troop 79, spon- sored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The district presentation to the council and mayor was by Kerby resident Vi- chi, and rural Cave Junction resident Deborah Murphy. Murphy is chief petitioner for the district, a former di- rector of the county library board, and a member of the Real Library Committee. They were accompanied by approximately 15 supporters of the planned district. Vichi noted that the plan is for “an adequate li- brary system” to meet the needs of library users. “We are looking for a long- running Toyota, not a flashy Cadillac,” she said. She added that library funding for the current fiscal year was reduced to $925,000, which translates into a 29-cent tax rate. Vichi stated that there will be a significant reduction for the 2006-07 fiscal year, and that no county funding for librar- ies is anticipated for the 2007-08 fiscal year. Murphy and Vichi said that a 55-cent tax rate would generate an estimated $2.67 million during the first year (2007-08 if approved by voters), and $4.66 million during the 10th year. The statewide mean for library districts is 57-cents, Vichi reported. She said that 33-cent rate, expiring this year, has been rolled into the county general fund rather than being used exclusively for the library system. The plan is to be able to provide at least 60 hours of service at least six days per week, and to have qualified staffing for library patrons. Additionally, the com- mittee and library board want to increase the number of books and library materi- als available; “strengthen and enhance” services coun- tywide; and improve current facilities while planning for growth needs. Mayor Tony Paulson expressed concern that city residents would be angered by a city stance on support- ing a library district because of the tax rate that could occur if voters approve it. He suggested that school libraries be used countywide instead of trying to upgrade existing public libraries. However, a num- ber of reasons were ex- plained why that would not work, including security and access, plus staffing and types of material that would be appropriate. Illinois Valley Garden Club Ron Padgett from Harmony Gardens will be the speaker during the Friday, Feb. 17 meeting. His subject will be, “Water Gardens.” The horticulture show-and-tell table will feature early blooms and pond edge plants. The club meets on third Fridays at Immanuel United Methodist Church, 200 W. Watkins St., Cave Junction. Cof- fee time begins at 12:30 p.m.; meeting at 1, unless otherwise noted. Anyone can attend. For information, phone 592-3239 or 592-4257. Lorna Byrne Middle School Family Night Thursday, February 16, 5:30 to 8 p.m. Catered by Taylor’s Prizes - Cake Walk - Games Important: Parents need to fill out surveys for Gear-Up Grant . Bothersome critters ... (Continued from page 2) The biggest enticements to wildlife are dog and cat food left outside. Feeding pets inside will easily rem- edy this problem. If you check around, you may even find that someone is inten- tionally feeding the wildlife. The next most common food source is unsecured garbage and compost piles. Storing garbage in secure containers or buildings will solve this problem. Master Gardener Pro- gram volunteers at county Extension offices -- and some gardening clubs -- can provide plans for building secure composters. The next easiest fix is to block the preferred nesting and resting places for nui- sance wildlife. Such places include outbuildings and the space under decks and houses. If none of these strate- gies work, you can contract with a private “critter getter” business to trap the animals. If you’re more adventurous, you can rent, buy or build your own live trap. First, obtain a permit from ODFW to trap the ani- mals yourself. Permits to trap non-native opossums or fox squirrels are not needed. But they are needed for trap- ping most other species. If you suspect a skunk is the problem, use a com- pletely enclosed trap to limit the chance of getting sprayed. If you only have access to an open mesh trap, cover it with a trap after catching a skunk. A good mixture to get rid of skunk odor is one quart of 3 percent hydrogen peroxide, plus 1/4 cup bak- ing soda, plus one teaspoon liquid soap. Some animals can be relocated, but that generally is not the best option. Animals relocated to unfamiliar territory, espe- cially those used to urban sources of food and shelter, usually find wildland un- suited to their behavioral patterns. Consequently, many relocated starve to death, are taken by preda- tors, or are killed when crossing unfamiliar roads. Animals that do survive relocation usually end up as someone else’s problem. Relocated animals also can cause disease outbreaks or further the spread of non- native species such as opos- sum, fox squirrel and star- lings. Non-native animals may not be relocated off-site and should be euthanized humanely. Those who plan to relo- cate native animals must first check with the nearest ODFW office for suitable release sites. A new OSU Extension publication by Ziegenhagen and Tuck, “Living with Nui- sance Wildlife,” gives spe- cific information for dealing with deer, elk, coyote, bobcat, bear, cougar, snakes, rodents, beavers, rabbits, hares, birds, and injured or abandoned wildlife in Oregon. It also provides names and telephone numbers of agencies that deal with nui- sance wildlife. Refreshments provided by the following chamber members: Wild River Brewing & Pizza Co., Taylor's Country Store, River Valley Restaurant, Junction Inn, Dairy Queen, Bagel Junction, Art's Red Garter, Golden Dragon Gate Restaurant, Carlos' Mexican Restaurante. What in the world would we do without our libraries? - Katherine Hepburn - Fire Mountain Gems and Beads Now Hiring Fire Mountain Gems and Beads is actively recruiting for full and part time high-energy individuals to join our growing team. Fire Mountain is a leading direct marketing company in the jewelry industry and has been satisfying customers with excellent products and customer service for over 30 years. We successfully market our products through our extensive catalogs and website to a broad customer base of creative jewelry makers, jewelry stores, and crafters. Please visit our website at www.firemountaingems.com for a full description of the following openings and to print out an application. 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